Wales pack a punch insists forwards coach McBryde

Wales may have come up short in their quest for a third successive RBS 6 Nations title but forwards coach Robin McBryde believes his novices excelled on the big stage.

Head coach Warren Gatland and McBryde mixed and matched throughout the Championship with no fewer than 14 players used in the forwards across their five games.

In that stretch 22-year-old lock Jake Ball earned his first cap, prop Rhodri Jones his first tournament start and Ken Owens was named as Wales' starting hooker for just the fourth time in the 51-3 defeat of Scotland.

Despite signing off the 2014 RBS 6 Nations in style with that dominant win, losses to both England and Ireland ensured a disappointing third place for Gatland's troops.

However, as far as McBryde is concerned, the building blocks are there in both quantity and quality for Wales' pack to flourish.

"It was great to be able to give Rhodri and Ken opportunity at this level and to see how they would cope of dealing with the pressure of international rugby," said McBryde.

"Rhodri hasn't got that much game time under his belt playing at tighthead but his workrate around the field, both in defence and attack was excellent.

"Ken played well right from the word go. We know how much of an impact he can have off the bench but he started the game in the same vein and he was able to keep that up.

"During the campaign, we've unearthed a few players, with someone like Jake Ball coming through as well. We're slowly and gradually getting a bit of strength in depth."

The story of the third round of the Women's Six Nations included one close and cagey encounter - as Ireland edged world champions England - and two decisive victories, with France putting Wales to the sword and Italy outclassing Scotland.